Illuminating device



June 12, 1923. v

w. H. SPENCER ILLUMINATI NG DEViCE Original Filed Dec. 27, 1910Sheets-Sheet L vwenbo'c' $3911 1115 abto r/meqs/ 3 2 9 l 2 7 1 e n u JW. H. SPENCER ILLUMINATING DEVICE Original Filed Dec. 27; 1910 .4Sheets-Sheet 5 awwento'c 351 his fitter/ways Reissued June 12., 1923.

UNITED STAT ES PATENT OFFICE.

WILLIAM S?EN CTER,f-OF "NEW YORK, N. Y., ASSIGNOR, BYmnsn-n'assrenunitrs; TO I. P. mmi 3.110., '01 NEW YORK, N. Y.,ALGORPOBATION' or NEW-YORK.

ILLUMINATING DEV-ICE.

Original No. 1,007,498, dated October 31, 1911, Serial. No.599,470-,-fl'1ed DecemberQT, 1910. Application for reissue filed-April21, 1923. Serial no. 633,569.

To all wkomit may co ncem Be it known that I, VVrLLLu'r H. Sr'nxcnn, acitizen of the United States. residing at New York. the county of NewYork and State of New York,-have invented certain new and usefulImprovements in Illuminating Devices; and I do hereby declarethe-following to be a full, clear, and exact description'pf theinventioh. such as will enable others'skilled .in the art to which itappertains to make and use the same. reference being had to theaccompanying drawings. and to characters ofreference marked thereon.which form a part of this specification.

The present invention relates. generally, to improvements inilluminating devices; and, the invention refers. more particularly. to anovel construction of illuminatin c devices adapted to be used inconnection with bank-screens or partitions. counters. cashiercages, andsimilar arrangements.

The present invention has for its principal object to provide anilluminating device comprising the combination of a cornice. lightdifiusing reflectors and lighting units, all being combined and arrangedin such a manner. so that when placed in proper position upon apartition or screen, such for ex ample as are used in banks forseparating the difi'erent departments, the light-rays will be properlydirected and redirected so as to throw the maximum light-flux upon thearea to be illuminated. such as the desks or counters usually forming apartof the partitions or screens used in banks. counting, houses,factory-oflices. and the like.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a. novel andsimple construction of illuminating device which may be artistically orornainentally combined with screens or partitions; and, which will givea proper distribution of, light in a desired area, but. which willshield or screen the direct light from the eye, and will cause." furthermorc. a soft and evenly diffused-light u ontheivorking surface orsurfaces, the direct-glare of the light being eliminated.

Other objects of the invention not at this time more particularlyenumerated, will f.be clearly Understoodirom the detailed description ofthe present-invention.

With the various objects of the present invention in view, the saidinvention con sists. primarily. in the novel construction ofilluminating devices hereinafter set forth;

and furthermore, this invention consis'ts, in

'the'novel arrangements and combinations of the variousdevices andparts. as well as in The invention is clearly illustrated in theaccompanying drawings. in which Figure 1 is a plan or birds-eye viewpf aportion of bank-partition or screen provided with the stall orcage-partitions and the counters or desks arranged therewith. the samebeing provided'with the novel illuminating devicesiconstructed accordingto and embodying the principles of the present in vention. Fig. 2 is atransverse vertical section of the devices and parts represented in saidFig. 1, said section being t-a'kenron line 22 in Figure 1, and the. saidview being made on an enlarged scale. Fig. 3 ave tical cross-sectiontaken on line in said Fig. 1, this View being also made-on. an anlargedscale. Fig. 4 is a transverse vertical section of the novel illuminatingdevice connected with the main partition onscreen,

similar to that shown in Fig. 2,"but the said view being made upon a.much enlarged scale; and Fig. 5 is a large detail. vertical,cross-section of the novel illuminating de vice connected .-with thestall- :or cage-par titions, similar to that shOWn'inFi-gfil',

Similar characters, 01f reference are em-L ployed in all of the abovedescribed'viewsj'toindicate corre ponding parts.

Referring now to the said" drawings, the reference-character 1 indicatesa mainpart'ition or screen, such ,forfexainple as is used in banks,co.unting. houses, factory-offices. stores and. the like and thereference-char acterQ' indicates the Stall-OK cage -partitionsconnectedfiherew-ith. extending transversely withrelation to the mainpartitions 'or screen =1,-'a.nd adapted'tom arate the variousbank-departments, or ot ier. departments from each other, as will beclearly evident from an in action of said Fig. 1' of the drawings.onn'ected with said main partition orscreen 1, and said stall orcage-partitions, are the usual desks or counters 3, the

said main partitions or screen being further provided with the usualopenings or windows 4 and the vwindow ledges 5.

The novel illuminating device connected with'the said main partition orscreen 1 is of thegeneral configuration and construction hereinaftermore fully set forth, and the with which such partitions'or screens areusually provided, and thus in itself providing a cornice for the saidpartition or screen. The said cornice-casing 6 as it may be termed,overhangs the inner side of the said main partition or screen 1, and thesame is (provided on its under side with a longitu i nally extendingopening, along one margin of which extends an inwardly projectingledgeor flange 7. Arranged within the interior of said cornice-casing 6 isthe shell of a reflector-shell, said shell extending in a longitudinaldirection throughout the inner portion of the reflector.- Saidreflector-shell comprises an upright wall or member 8 which is providedwith an outwardly projecting trough-like member 9,

the said upright-wall or member 8 may be secured, in any suitablemanner, to a suitable flange or rib 10 with which said cornice-casingmay be provided.

Connected with the upper portion of said upright wall or member 8 is aseries of reflector-supporting facets or faces 11, the

same extending across the upper interior part of said cornice casing 6,and being arranged atproper angles to support a suitable number ofreflecting elements in a mannor to properly direct and reflect the lightof one or more light units in desired directions. Connected with saidreflector-supporting facets or faces 11 is anotherupright wall or member12, the same being secured,

inany suitable manner, to some convenient gart of the walls of saidcornice-casing 6. roperly disposed and connected with saidreflector-supportin facets or faces 11 are suitably formed 0 annel-bars13, the same serving to sup rt and retain upon said reflector-supportingfacets or faces 11, suitable reflector-members or elements 14, 14, 14

and 14 the latter being preferably made of silvered glass of any!desirable form. Said I trough-like member 9, which provides a wiringconduit or trough, is adapted to receive-the walls '15 of a light orlamp-supporting member 16, to retain the latter in. its

proper position and to support lightin units in proper relation to saidwiring-conduit or trough, and said reflector members. Said engaging theinner side of said lamp-sup porting member 16. The wires 21-of the lamps19 extend throughthe said sockets or brackets 18 and penetrate withinsaid wiring-trough, where the same are pro erly and electricallyconnected in circuit Wit the vmain line or feed-wires 22. The uprightwalls or members 8 and 12 are also provided with a pluralit of holes oropenings 23 for the purposes 0 ventilation and for carrying away, fromthe interior of the said reflectorshell, the heat generated by the saidlamps. In like manner, the said cornice-casing is also rovided with aplurality of holes or openings 24 in its upper-Wall, which provide anoutlet 'for the heatwithin said reflectorshell and the cornice-casingwh'ic-h col lects from said lamps, thus keeping the interior of thevarious devices and parts cool, and consequently prolonging the life of"the lamps. Disposed along the lower marginal edge of said upright wallor member 8 is a suitably formedhinge element 25 to which is pivotallyconnected, by means of corresponding hinge-elements 26 and a pintle 27,a frame 28 designed to sup rt acrom the openin in the bottom of saidcornice-casing 6 a light-diffusing and softening screen 29, the latterbeing preferably made of ground glass, or some similar and suitablematerial. he outer marginal edge 30 of the said frame 28 is providedwith suitable latchmembers 31, said members 31 .being formed withmanipulating knobs 32, and the said latch members being adapted toengage the inwardly projecting ledge or flange 7 of the cornice-casing 6toretain said frame 28 and screen 29 in their operative positions.- Saidframe 28 may be divided into suitable sections, of any desired lengths,so that the same maybe conveniently openedto give access to any part ofthe interior of said'cornice-casing 6, as will be clearly evident.

Referring to Figure-4 of the drawing, reflector element 14 receives raysfrom the light source 19 and reflects them over the entire area of thlight diffusing screen 29,

with none of the rays wasted, as can be noted by an inspection of Figure4 of the drawing Where has been illustrated the direction of theredirection of rays a and b drawn to impinge on the extreme portions ofthe said reflector element. The reflector element 14 distributes itslight, received from the source 19, substantially over the entire areaof the drawn in a similar manner. 'flector elements, 14" and 149, eachdistributes screen 29, as disclosed by the re s c and d The two reitsrays over the major portion of the screen 29, toward the counter, asillustrated by the rays e, f, g and h.'.

As illustrated in Fig. 4, the reflector members are mountedeooentrically with relation to the light source.

As thus constructed and arranged, with relation to the said partition orscreen 1, the novel illuminating device herein-above described not onlyprovides an ornamental completion of said partition or screen 1, butalso so disposes of the lighting units and reflecting members, that thebest light-efficiency and light diffus on 'is produced,

' and the reflector-members 14 are disposed at such suitable angles sothat a maximum lightflux is directed over the entire working surface ofthe desk or counter 3; and, furthermore, the high reflecting andconcentrating power of the said reflector-members 14. 14, 14 and 14permits the use of lamps of approximately low candle-power. Saidlampseing spaced at proper and suitable intervals throughout the lengthof said cornicecasing 6, and their light being directed from the variousreflector-points or sources, causes such a distribution of light as toenable the clerk to work in any position when writing either left-handor right-hand, without producing annoying shadows. Furthermore, the useof said softening and diffusing screen 29 screens the direct light fromthe eyes of the clerk or clerks, and causes an even and soft diffusion'of the light, without glare, upon the working surface of said desk orcounter.

Usually in the construction of bankartitions or screens, what are termedstal or cage-partitions are provided for the purpose of se arating thevarious pubhc windows departments from each other. In such construction,the said stall or cageartitions 2 are also provided with the saicornicecasings 6 which are arranged to join or abut the saidcornice-casing 6 of the main .par-

titions or screen 1. substantially as illus'-' trated in Fig. 1 of thedrawings. Said cornice-casing 6 in such case, however, is

so arranged as to overhang each side of the and its slightly modifiedinteriorconstrum t'ion upon a stall or cageartition is clearly 5 of theaccom-' illustrated in Figs. 3 an panyin drawings. In this construction,the re ector-shell is supported within the upper interior part of saidcornice-casing 6, the said reflector-shell comprising a troughing.Extending from each side of said trough-like member 33 is a set ofreflectorsupporting facets or faces 34, the free marginal edges' ofwhich may be suitably'secured to the respective walls of the saidcornice-casing 6. Properly disposed and connected with saidreflector-supporting facets 0r faces 34 are channel-like bars 35, whichserve to support and retain upon said reflector-supporting facetsorfaces 34 suitable reflector-members or elements 36, the latter beingpreferably made of silvered glass of any desirable form, or othersimilar and suitable material. Said troughlike member 33 is adapted toreceive the walls 37 of a light'or lamp-supporting member 38, to retainthe latter in its proper position so as to support lighting-units inproper relation to said wiring-trough or conduit and the said reflectormembers. Said lamp-supporting member 38 is provided, at suitableintervals, preferably twelve inches apart, with holes or openings 39adapted to receive the sockets or. brackets 40 of lamps 41, each socketor bracket 40 being provided with a marginal flange 42 for engaging theinner side of said lampsupporting member 38. The wires 43 of each lamp,41 extend through said sockets or brackets 40 and penetrate within thesaid wiring-trough or conduit, where they are properly and electricallyconnected in cir cuit with the main line or feed wires 22, arrangedwithin said wiring-trough or conduita Said reflector-shell is provided,adjacent to its marginal edges, with suitable openings 44 providingmeans for ventilating and carrying off the heat generated by said lamps,said heat finally escaping through the holes or openings 24 with whichsaid. cornice-casing 6 is provided, substantially in the mannerhere-inabove described. Said cornice-casing 6 is also provided with aivotally'connected frame 28. and a light-diffusing and softening screen29, hereinbefore described, the same being connected, however, by meansof a hinge element 45 with which one wall of the said cornice-casing .6is provided. The said frame 28 is also provided with the latchmembers 31and manipulating knobs 32, the former of which engages said ledge orflange 7 of said cornice-casing 6, in the manner herein-above set forth.I I

The stall or cage-partition 2 is provided with open or cut-away spaces46 lying directly beneath the illuminating devices, so that the lightmay be directed and diffused upon the surface of the desk or counter,upon either side of the said stall or cage partition. Thereflector-members 36 are arranged in such a manner, so that the maximumflux of light from the lamps 41 is ditition, whereby this arrangement ofthe de- 'vices and parts has all the efliciency and at tributes'hereinabove mentioned.

It will 'thus be understood, that by means of the resent invention, Ihave produced a hover-construction of illuminating de vice peculiarlyadapted for use with that class of partitions used in banks,countinghouses, factory-offices, stores and for all similar work andpurposes, the same presenting a sightly concealment of the lighting unitor units, and at the same time locating theisame and controlling thelight generated thereby, in such a manner, so as to gain a maximumefliciency of light-tone, diffusion, and distribution;

I am aware that changes may be made in the general arrangements andcombinations of the various devices and parts, as

well as in the details of the construction of the same, as described inthe accompanying specifications, and without departing from the scope ofmy present invention as defined in the claims appended hereto. Hence, Ido not limit my present invention to the exact arranigements andcombinations of the devices an parts, asset forth in .the foregoingspecifications, nor doI confine myself to the exact details of theconstruction of the said parts, as illustrated in the accompanyingdrawings.

' Having described my invention what I regard as new and desire tosecureby Letters atent is:

1. In banking or counting house furniture, the combination of a mainvertically extending partition or screen, counters on the insideof thescreen, with a longitudinally extending elevated casing or cornice,having an opening in the bottom thereof. a reflector-shell extendinglongitudinally within the interior of the cornice-casing,

reflector members supported by said refiec-' tor-shell, a plurality oflamps'or lighting units supported beneath the reflector members, and alight diffusing screen extending across'the opening in the cornicecasing, the reflectors being arranged to direct the light from the lampsdown through the diffusing screen to the counters.

2. In banking or counting house furniture, the combmation of a mainvertically extendin partition or screen, counters on the insi e of thescreen, a longitudinally mounted cornice casing extending along the topof the artition or screen and having its mouth-directed downwardlytoward the I counters, a reflector 'sup ort within the easing comprisingangular y arranged facets,

reflector elements on said facets facing the bottom of the casing,lighting means supported beneath the reflector elements, and a lightdiffusing means extending across the bottom of the casing, theinclination of the reflector elements to each other being such that theli ht rays striking said elements are directed downwardly through thedifi'using means to bediffused thereby and directed over the entireworking plane of the counters. 3. In banking'or counting housefurnitures the combination of a main vertically extendin partition orscreen, counters on the insi e of the screen, a cornice casingsubstantially U-shaped above said partition with the longitudinalopening directed downwardly toward the counters, lighting meanssupported in said casing above and in.

longitudinal opening of the casing, to re-v ceive the upwardly directedlight rays and reflect them downwardly toward the opening, and a lightdiffusing member covering the opening to'receive the rays and diffusethem over the entire working plane of the counters.

4. In banking or counting house furniture I I the combination of a mainvertically and longitudinally extending partition or screen, withanother partition extending transversely thereto, counters on the insideof the mainpartition and on both sides of the transverse partition,cornice casings, substantially U-shaped, above said partitions with thelongitudinal opening directed downwardly toward the counters, lightingunits supported in said cornice casings, in

line with the transverse partition and on the inside of the longitudinalpartition, a reflector .device in each cornice casing, above the lihting units, facing the bottom opening 0% its respective casing,diffusing members covering the openings of the casings, the reflectordevice in the transverse casing being arran ed to receive rays anddirect them on hot sides of the partition to illuminate the counters,and the reflector device in the longitudinal casing being arran deccentrically with relation to the lighting units to direct all the raysreceived by it to the counter on the inside of the longitudinalpartition.

5. In' banking or counting house furniture the combination of avertically extendin partition or screen, counters on-the insi e of thescreen, a longitudinally mounted cornice casing substantiall U-shaped,extending along the top of the artition and having its opening directedown. wardly toward the counters, lighting means supported in saidcasing above the openin of the casing and to one side of the partition,a reflector device interposed between the lighting nieans,and the top ofthe en s-.- opening; to receive the rays and difl'usethem ing and h'avinits reflective vsurface faoing overthe entire Working plane 'of'the'c0'unthe opening 0 the casing, and eccentricall y ters. errangedinrelation to-the lightin'glmeans, In. testimony whereof I have signed thea to receive the upwardly directed rays and reforegoing specification.

"fleet thlem downwardly toward the opening, y

and a light difl'using member covering the WILLIAM H. SPENCER.

